BHOPAL: The Carcass of an adult tiger was found floating in a river in the buffer zone of Pench National Park in Chhindwara district with its paws missing, triggering a panic among the forest department on Saturday when all six parks and reserves in the state were opened for tourists after three months.
Occult practice that had been a major threat to tiger conservation in this area is considered to be the reason behind mutilation of its body and missing organs. Self-styled sorcerers ‘tantriks’ extract paws, claws and whiskers to cast spells on them and "make money rain from the sky". Villagers easily get taken in. There is a strong belief in this particular region of the state that you can get wealthy with magic spell on tiger paws, sources say.
